Wild West – April 2010 – Table of Contents

Cover StoryTaking Stock of the Pony ExpressSESQUICENTENNIAL (1860-2010) By Frederick J. Chiaventone
Young, wiry riders delivered the mail 150 years ago when the Pony Express ran on determination, a tight schedule and an even tighter budget.

Gold Teeth and Lead Bullets By Lee Shackelton
A Ballarat brute nettled a miner with a mouthful of gold, which started the lead flying one summer morning among hard-drinking citizens in this California mining town.

Ambush and Siege at Paint RockBy Wayne R. Austerman
Jack Hays’ Texas Rangers laid a trap for Comanche raiders, then beat back the larger force—or so the story goes.

Jack Slade: Western Jekyll and HydeBy Dan Rottenberg
The steadfast Central Overland stage superintendent once impressed Mark Twain but often transformed into a hard-drinking ruffian—once too often to suit Montana vigilantes.

Jack Watkins, the Laramie TerrorBy R.K. DeArment
He was a man with a sketchy past and not much of a future, but for a few short months and deadly moments in Wyoming Territory, Watkins was an outlaw king.

Reviews
Must-read books and must-see movies about the Pony Express, as well as a Pony DVD. Plus a bonanza of recent books and Bonanza on DVD.

Go West!
Make tracks to Utah’s Golden Spike National Historic Site.

On the cover: April 3, 2010, marks the sesquicentennial of The First Ride of the Pony Express, a nearly 2,000-mile trip that began in St. Joseph, Mo., on April 3, 1860, and was captured in this 20th-century oil by American artist Charles W. Hargens Jr. (Pony Express National Museum, St. Joseph, Mo.)

ONLINE EXTRAS

Discussion: The Pony Express marks its 150th anniversary this year. How would you rate that short-lived venture (April 1860–October 1861) compared to, say, the Adams Express Company, Wells Fargo and Company, Butterfield Overland Mail, Brigham Young Express and Carrying Company and the Holladay Overland Mail and Express Company?

The Pony Express: Riders of Destiny: Author Christopher Corbett writes, “The story of the Pony Express is a bit like the story of Paul Revere’s ride—an actual historic event, rooted in fact and layered with fabrications.”

Pinta Trail Crossing: Five years before the ambush and siege at Paint Rock, Jack Hays led his Texas Rangers into a similar fight with Comanches at Pinta Trail Crossing.

Also be sure to visit GreatHistory.com, where you can read and write about history, even if you don’t know a ‘blog’ from a Pony Express mochila

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